What's Almost Lost
by alightintheshadows
Summary: Frank Archer wants the Fullmetal Alchemist under his command. How far is he willing to go to get what he wants, especially with a stubborn Edward? Parental!RoyEd. Rated T just to be safe. One-shot.


**Hello! This is my first attempt at an FMA fanfic! This is taking place at the very beginning of Brotherhood. I decided to write this one-shot to explain why Frank Archer wasn't in Brotherhood. I watched the 2003 anime first, so I kind of missed him. Anyways, since this is my first time writing these characters, please forgive me if the characters seem OOC.**

 **I unfortunately do not own Fullmetal Alchemist.**

Edward Elric sighed as he closed another book. After researching the entire afternoon, he had been hoping to find another lead on the Philosopher's Stone. However, he was unsuccessful in that respect. He didn't really expect to find much seeing as he was alone and had less than a day for research. The only reason he was even at the library in East City was because he had a report to hand Colonel Mustang before heading to Resembool for a week for Winry to tune up his automail. He told Al to go on to Resembool immediately following their last mission and he would be there on the first train heading to Resembool after turning in his report. Unfortunately for Ed, that train didn't leave until the following morning.

Ed checked his pocket watch. It was just after five, and he was already tired. He couldn't believe his meeting with Mustang had only been three hours ago. Nothing other than the usual Ed yelling and Mustang commenting on Ed's lack of height occurred during their meeting, but it just felt as if their meeting was a lifetime ago. Ed put the book away and made to exit the library.

"Major Elric!" Ed heard someone call as he opened the door.

He turned to see Lieutenant Colonel Frank Archer approaching him. This was the first time Ed had actually seen Frank Archer in person, but he had seen pictures of him and the various other officers he could potentially come into contact with as he went about on missions. He had heard that the Lieutenant Colonel was visiting Eastern Headquarters, but no one seemed to know why he was here. Some guessed that he wants to replace Mustang and was snooping around to see how Mustang was doing in the East.

"Um, hello?" Ed responded in confusion, wondering why on earth Frank Archer would want to talk to him.

Archer grabbed Ed's hand and shook it.

"I've been wanting to meet the Fullmetal Alchemist for quite some time!" he said with a grin.

Ed didn't know what it was about the Lieutenant Colonel, but he gave him the creeps. Maybe it was the pale complexion of the man which was almost vampire-like. Or maybe it was how unnatural the grin looked on his face. It looked like the man had never smiled a day in his life.

"I've been meaning to speak to you for awhile, but I rarely find myself in the East," Archer continued, "Are you heading back to the dorms? I could walk with you and we could talk along the way!"

Before Ed could even answer, Archer slung his arm around Ed's shoulders and guided him out of the library. They were greeted with the cold winter wind and a setting sun once exiting the building. Ed had managed to shrug off Archer's arm and pulled his red coat tighter around his body, as if that would do anything to fend off the cold.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" Ed asked, even though he wasn't remotely interested in what the Lieutenant Colonel had to say.

"I understand that Colonel Mustang is your commanding officer, correct?"

Ed nodded. He had a feeling he knew where this conversation was heading now.

"Do you enjoy working under him?" Archer asked next.

Ed shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess."

"You don't sound too enthusiastic about it," Archer chuckled.

Ed just shrugged again.

Truth be told he didn't want to work for the military at all, but he had to if he wanted to get his and Al's bodies back. Sure, Mustang could be a bastard. He was arrogant and self-centered as well as manipulative at times. However, after meeting some of the other higher-ups in the military, Mustang really didn't seem half bad. Ed thought that some of the missions that Mustang sent him on were pointless and dumb, but he would provide whatever leads he could on the Philosopher's Stone. As for being manipulative, Mustang definitely was when he wanted to be, but it was usually for the greater good...usually.

"Well, Major Elric, I would like to offer you the opportunity to work under my command. I could give you a raise, there's a good chance of you being promoted…"

Ed tuned him out after this point. Several other officers had tried to get him to transfer to under their command. As much as he and Mustang bickered and angered each other, Ed wouldn't want to work under anyone else. Not that anyone would ever get Ed to admit that, though. He let the Lieutenant Colonel ramble as they walked through the cold toward Eastern Command. As they got closer to the building. Ed could see most of the lights in headquarters were off, a sign that many military officers were home for the evening. He could see the lights around the area where Mustang's office was were on. Despite being able to see this, the two still had a little ways to walk down a deserted street.

All of a sudden, Archer stopped walking and turned to face Ed.

"So do we have a deal, Major Elric?" he asked hopefully as he extended his hand.

"I'll pass, " Ed said as he made to continue walking toward headquarters.

He was stopped when Archer spun him around and grabbed his arms tight enough that he probably bruised his flesh arm. He leaned in a little closer to Ed, his eyes darkening and a creepy smile plastering itself across his face. Ed quickly looked around the street, but saw no one. Just the abandoned buildings.

"Are you sure you don't want to reconsider?"

At this point, Ed was getting a really bad feeling and he just wanted to get away from the Lieutenant Colonel.

"I said no," Ed said coldly.

He wrenched himself out of Archer's grasp and turned to head back toward Eastern Command. He cried out in pain when he was grabbed by his braid and was dragged into a nearby alley.

"What the hell?" he yelled.

Archer grabbed Ed by his throat and slammed him against the wall of a building, lifting him up until his feet couldn't touch the ground. Ed struggled for air and clawed at the hand around his throat. Archer still had the creepy smile on his face.

"I'm afraid that's not the answer I'm looking for, Major Elric," he said calmly as he stroked Ed's face with the other hand.

Ed tried to respond, but his voice was caught in his throat.

"If you will just cooperate with me, this will be a lot less painful for you."

Ed could see black spots dancing in his vision. He knew he had to get away as fast as he could. He obviously was not going to be let go so easily. He punched the Lieutenant Colonel in the face with his automail hand, hearing the satisfying crack of a broken nose.

"You damn brat!" Archer hollered as he dropped Ed and tried to stop the blood flowing from his nose.

Ed tried to quickly catch his breath and run out of the alley, but he was tackled to the ground before he could get back to the main street. Before he could even react, Archer grabbed his ankles and dragged him deeper into the alley. He tried to get up, but he was met with a brutal kick to his stomach which knocked the breath out of him. He curled on his side and coughed violently as he tried to catch his breath again, but he never got the chance. Ed heard footsteps near his head. He looked up to see Archer looming over him. The blood from his broken nose was still dripping everywhere, including on Ed.

The pissed off Lieutenant Colonel picked up Ed by the front of his shirt and slammed him once again against the wall of the building, but this time they were closer to one of the windows. Dazed, he couldn't fight back as his wrists were pinned to the wall above his head. Archer leaned in way too close for Ed's comfort with a cold expression on his face.

"Listen up, you little brat," Archer growled, "I'm going to be nice and give you one last chance to come with me willingly and transfer to under my command."

Ed swallowed and looked toward the entrance of the alley, hoping somebody would be walking down the usually deserted street. Archer used his free hand to grab Ed's chin to face him. He leaned in even more and whispered threateningly into Ed's ear.

"No one is coming to help you. It's just you and me here. You will be under my command whether you want to or not. I have a variety of methods to convince you to change your mind if you are insistent on being so stubborn."

"Screw...you…." Ed wheezed as he was still having trouble breathing.

Archer struck Ed across the face. He let go of Ed's wrists, but grabbed his shoulders and threw him so his upper body crashed hard enough into the window to break it. Ed landed on the ground with a cry of pain, having landed on the shards of glass that managed to fall on the outside of the building. He tried to crawl away from the glass, but an onslaught of kicks to his stomach, chest, and back prevented him from doing so.

"You brought this upon yourself, Fullmetal Alchemist," Archer chuckled.

He stopped kicking and used his foot to push Ed on his back. A pained groan was all he got as a response. He quickly moved Ed's arms to his sides, then straddled him so the arms were pinned there.

"Get off me!" Ed roared as loud as he could.

Archer clamped his hand over Ed's mouth. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a syringe. Ed's eyes widened when he saw the needle. Archer smirked down at him right before he plunged the syringe into his neck and injected its contents into him.

Ed immediately felt the effects of the drug. He felt extremely tired and couldn't even try to move, not that he could anyway with Archer pinning him to the ground. He fought the oncoming unconsciousness as much as he could, but he was losing this battle pretty fast. His eyes began to droop.

"Fullmetal!" Ed thought he heard someone call, or maybe it was just his imagination.

Whatever was in that syringe, it must have been laced with a hallucinogen. That was the only plausible explanation Ed could think of for seeing Mustang tackle Archer off of him right before he blacked out.

 ***break***

The first thing Ed registered as he began to return to consciousness was a pounding headache. At first he couldn't even remember why he was unconscious in the first place. He tried to open his eyes, but that proved to be a difficult task. The next thing he felt was a gentle hand stroking his hair. It was soothing and made him relax a little. Then he heard the voices.

"Hawkeye, he's gone completely mad. He was going to torture Fullmetal until he would cooperate, even if it meant completely brainwashing him."

The voice sounded angry. The next voice came from right next to him.

"I will never understand what could make Frank Archer want to do that to a teenager, state alchemist or not. I'm just glad we were there when we were."

Upon hearing Frank Archer's name, Ed instantly remembered what happened. He shot up into a sitting position and forced his eyes open, but he regretted the sudden action when the headache intensified. He let out a pained groan and clutched his pounding head.

"Ed! Take it easy!"

Ed turned his head and saw Hawkeye right next to him. He then looked around and noticed that he was in Mustang's office.

"You need to lie back down," she instructed as she helped him lie back down on a couch.

Ed shut his eyes again, the light in the room seeming too bright. He heard someone shuffling closer and decided to try and open his eyes again. He slowly let his eyes flutter back open and was met with the sight of Mustang's concerned gaze.

"Fullmetal, how are you feeling?"

"Like I've been drugged," came his sarcastic reply.

Mustang let out an exasperated sigh. Only Fullmetal could still crack a joke in a time like this.

"Fullmetal, I really need to know how you're doing. Would you please tell us what you last remember?"

Ed took a deep breath and winced in pain as he did so, the beating to his chest and back making it painful to breath. Then he responded.

"I remember Lieutenant Colonel Frank Archer trying to convince me to transfer to his jurisdiction, but I told him no. The bastard apparently didn't like that answer because he started to beat me. When I still didn't agree, he pinned me down and drugged me…." he trailed off as another thought occurred to him, "Where is he, anyway?"

"We have him in custody," Mustang answered, "He's being interrogated as we speak. He will probably be moved to the prison until further notice."

Ed nodded. He was about to ask another question when Havoc walked in.

"Sir, General Grumman wishes to speak with you," he told Mustang. He saw that Ed was awake and smiled. "Chief! Good to see that you're awake!"

Ed gave him a weak smile in return.

"All right. Hawkeye, will you stay with him?" Mustang asked.

"Of course," she responded, then Mustang and Havoc left the office.

There was a moment of silence between the First Lieutenant and Ed. Hawkeye was staring in the direction that Mustang went with a worried expression on her face. Ed broke the silence.

"Um, Lieutenant Hawkeye? How did you guys find me?" he asked while trying to sit up again.

"The drug is still in your system, so you should probably not try to get up for awhile," she said as she gently pushed Ed back down on the couch, "As for how we found you…."

 _ ***flashback***_

" _Please, Hawkeye, I just really need some fresh air. I've been stuck in this office all day and I can't focus on my paperwork any longer!" Mustang complained._

 _Everyone but Havoc had already gone home for the evening. Hawkeye sighed._

" _Fine, but I'm coming with you to make sure you actually come back. Havoc can manage by himself for a little bit."_

 _Mustang jumped to his feet and grabbed his coat. As they walked through the halls of Eastern Command. The pair ran into General Grumman. Both saluted him and the General just chuckled._

" _There's absolutely no need for that," he laughed, "Especially from my own granddaughter!"_

 _He reached out and pulled Hawkeye into a hug._

" _It's good to see you, grandfather," she said with one of her rare smiles._

" _Can I ask what you both are up to?" he asked._

" _Well," Hawkeye began, "The Colonel can't seem to focus on his paperwork, so we're going out for some fresh air."_

 _The General chuckled and clapped Mustang on the shoulder._

" _I can completely understand that, but I'm afraid I haven't had a chance to catch up with the two of you in awhile. Would you two mind if I tagged along?"_

 _Both nodded and the group made their way out of the building. They walked around the streets of East City, engaging in delightful conversation. They made their down a deserted street back toward Eastern Command when they heard the sound of breaking glass. Hawkeye and Mustang looked at each other. Hawkeye and Grumman took out a gun while Mustang put on his ignition gloves. The trio moved in the direction of the noise when a voice made them stop in their tracks._

" _Get off me!"_

 _Mustang's eyes widened. He knew that voice all too well. Sprinting to the opening of an alley, they were greeted with the sight of Lieutenant Colonel Frank Archer straddling Edward and plunging a syringe into his neck._

" _Fullmetal!" Mustang yelled._

 _Archer looked toward the entrance of the alley, his eyes wide in shock. Before anyone could stop him, Mustang ran full speed toward the man and tackled him off Ed. Without even thinking, he pulled out a pair of handcuffs and restrained the Lieutenant Colonel. He grabbed Archer by the front of his shirt and slammed him into a wall._

" _What the hell do you think you're doing to my subordinate?" he growled, feeling angrier than he had in a very long time._

 _To Mustang's surprise, Archer started to laugh. It started out subtle, but then spiraled into complete and utter madness. This was unusual coming from the usually focused and serious Lieutenant Colonel. Mustang struck him across the face to try and snap him out of it. It seemed to work._

" _Colonel, he's unconscious."_

 _Mustang turned his head to see Hawkeye on the ground with Ed's upper body in her lap. Grumman was looking over the boy, checking his injuries. He could see blood on Ed's face and some bruises already starting to form._

" _What did you inject him with?" Mustang demanded as he slammed Archer against the wall again, causing him to hit his head._

" _Ouch! Relax Flame, it's just a sedative. It should wear off within an hour or two," he said as he winced due to the pain in his head, but the wince soon turned into a smirk, "However, the bruises I gave him should last a good, long time."_

 _Anger flashed in Mustang's eyes. He kneed Archer in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain. He delivered only a couple of blows to his face when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned his head to see Grumman giving him a sympathetic grin._

" _That's enough, Roy," said Grumman, "I understand you are angry. We will secure him at Command and interrogate him, but until then, Edward needs you."_

 _Mustang sighed. He knew the General was right. He looked back to Archer who gave him a bloody smile._

" _Go on, Flame, take care of your little subordinate," Archer mocked as he burst into another fit of laughter._

 _Mustang dealt one last blow before handing him over to Grumman._

" _General, please notify me immediately when he's ready for interrogation."_

 _Grumman nodded and marched Archer off toward Eastern Command. Mustang walked over to Ed and Hawkeye. His anger only grew when he got a closer look at his battered subordinate._

" _He's got several bruises and cuts, but surprisingly none of them look threatening enough to take him to the hospital," she informed him, "He'll be grateful for that when he wakes up. You and I both know how much he hates hospitals."_

 _Mustang nodded. He crouched down next to Ed. Hawkeye could definitely see the concern in his eyes, and she wasn't surprised at all. As much as he tried to hide it, she obviously knew that he cared about the young alchemist. She also wasn't surprised when the Colonel brushed away the golden hair that had fallen in front of Ed's face in an almost father-like gesture._

" _I'll never understand how it is that you attract trouble so easily, Fullmetal, even within our own military," he said softly, then he turned his gaze to Hawkeye, "I want to move him to my office. The last thing he probably will remember is being attacked. It will be good for him to wake up somewhere familiar. Besides, even Fullmetal can't find trouble in my office."_

 _Mustang slipped his arms under Ed's knees and back, lifting him up with very little struggle. The automail was slightly heavier than he expected, but it wasn't anything he couldn't handle. The two made their way back to headquarters._

 _ ***end flashback***_

Ed stared at Hawkeye with wide eyes as she finished explaining what happened.

"We came back and briefly filled in Havoc to what happened. He was almost as ticked off as the Colonel. About ten minutes after we returned, General Grumman came in and told us that Archer was ready for interrogation. Since it would still be awhile before you woke up, the Colonel went to help question him. He instructed that Havoc and I watch you and to go get him if you woke up. He came back from the interrogation even angrier than when he went in, which I honestly didn't think was possible," she paused and looked out the door in a contemplative manner, "He gave Havoc and I the short version of what Archer said, but as for what Archer said to him to make him so angry, I don't think he will ever tell us, or anyone for that matter."

Ed was still in shock. Whether it was from Archer's attack or, from what he gathered from Hawkeye's story, the fact that Colonel Mustang might actually care about him. Speaking of the Colonel, he returned to his office and walked over to Ed on the couch.

"Are you feeling any better?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.

"My head is still hurting and I'm sore," Ed answered honestly.

Mustang nodded. He wasn't shocked at Ed's answer, that was to be expected. However, he was surprised that Ed was honest with him instead of trying to hide his pain. Although, Ed knew that he knew what happened, so there wouldn't be much of a point in lying anyway.

"I figured as much, so you're staying the night with me," he raised his hand to put a stop to any objection that Ed tried to make, "Archer claimed to have no one else here with him, but just in case, I have to know that you're safe. Besides knowing you, you would probably fail to take care of yourself properly. Hawkeye and I will take you to the train station tomorrow morning. Havoc is getting your suitcase from your dorm now and will meet us at my car. Do you think you can get up?"

Ed nodded. He managed to sit himself up and get to his feet. However, the drug still had not completely wore off, so the room began to tilt and his knees buckled. Luckily, Mustang had anticipated this and caught him. Ed found himself scooped up into the Colonel's arms and being carried out of the office, Hawkeye following closely behind them in case she needed to help her Colonel.

"Hey! I can walk!" he protested weakly, a little embarrassed about being carried.

"Yeah, I could really tell when you nearly embraced the floor. And it's not like it's the first time I've carried you today," Mustang teased in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Ed lifted his head up to glare at his superior. He found Mustang smirking at him. That smirk went away when Ed let out a groan of pain and let his head fall on Mustang's shoulder. His grip on Ed tightened unconsciously, as if he wanted to make sure that the kid knew that he would be okay and that he was safe. The young alchemist shivered when they walked out in the cold night. He noticed that it was now completely dark out.

"What time is it?" he asked.

"It's almost seven-thirty," Hawkeye answered.

They continued on in silence for the short distance it took to make it to the car. Havoc and General Grumman were there waiting for him. Hawkeye grabbed the keys from the Colonel's pocket to unlock the car. Havoc loaded the suitcase into the trunk and Grumman approached Mustang and Ed.

"It's good to see you're okay, Edward," Grumman said with a small smile which Ed returned. He looked to Mustang.

"I promise I'll take good care of him," Mustang vowed.

"I know you will, Roy."

Grumman opened the back door of the car for Mustang to put Ed in the back of the car. He lied Ed down on the back seat, then took off his coat and covered the boy. Ed gave him a confused expression.

"Don't think I didn't notice you shivering," he said nonchalantly.

Mustang and Hawkeye got in the car, and they were off. Ed must have dozed off because the next thing he registered was the car pulling into a driveway. Hawkeye grabbed Ed's suitcase and unlocked the house while Mustang helped Ed out of the car. The drug must have been mostly out of Ed's system because he was actually able to stand on his own two feet and have Mustang guide him into the house. Once inside, Mustang put on one of his gloves. With a snap, a fire roared to life in the fireplace. Ed looked around Mustang's home. It was simple, yet nice.

"I'll get dinner started," Hawkeye said as she took of her military jacket.

"All right. Thank you, Lieutenant," Mustang said gratefully.

He asked Hawkeye if she would also stay with him for the night, and of course given the circumstances she agreed. He grabbed Ed's suitcase and led him up the stairs into his guest room. He went out into the hallway and returned with some towels. He handed them to Ed and gestured to the bathroom.

"You're covered in dirt and dry blood, so why don't you go take a shower and I'll bandage you up afterward. Just call for me if you need anything."

The teen nodded, and the Colonel left the room. Grabbing some black sweatpants and a black t-shirt as well as his shower things from his suitcase, Ed made his way to the bathroom. After taking off his read cloak and black tank top, he took a look at himself in the mirror. He had dirt and dry blood on his face and in his hair. Several dark purple bruises covered his stomach and chest. There were several cuts on his flesh arm and on what he could see of his back from falling in the broken glass. Overall, he looked like hell.

He got in the shower and washed himself off. He stood there for a minute, wondering if Mustang would tell him what Archer had said. He quickly got out and dried himself, then putting on his clothes. Opting just to put his hair in a ponytail, he walked out of the bathroom and put his old clothes in his suitcase. He heard a knock on the door as Mustang entered with a first aid kit.

"Fullmetal, I'm going to need you to take your shirt off."

Ed's eyes widened and a slight blush crept up onto his face. He expected Mustang to laugh at his reaction, but was surprised when he just shut the door and guided him to the bed.

"I don't think this is necessary," he stammered.

"It's just us, it's okay," Mustang said as he put a comforting hand on Ed's shoulder, "And this is definitely necessary. Now let me help you, or I'll get Hawkeye to force you to let me."

Ed's eyes widened and Mustang smirked at the reaction, knowing that they both were equally scared of a pissed off Riza Hawkeye. Ed hesitantly removed the black shirt. Mustang's eyes darkened when he saw the extent of Ed's injuries. His anger toward Frank Archer only grew.

"I'm going to incinerate that son of a bitch!" he grumbled to himself as he sat down next to Ed on the bed and opened the first aid kit.

He began applying antiseptic to the cuts and bandaging them. An awkward silence passed between the two alchemists before Ed got the nerve to break it.

"Colonel, what did Archer say to you?" he asked. When Mustang visibly tensed he added, "Unless you don't want to tell me."

Usually he would demand that Mustang tell him, but whatever happened between those two had really pissed him off. He really didn't want to face the wrath of the Flame Alchemist.

"Considering what he did to you, you have every right to know...at least most of it," he began, "Frank Archer and I have never got along. He enjoys the horrors of war and dreams of one day being a war hero. Most decent people understand that while sometimes war is unavoidable, it should be a last resort. However, Archer does not share the same views. I think his determination and obsession with war drove him into madness. He kept blabbering about how a war unlike anything we've ever seen was coming. He thought with a powerful alchemist like you under his command, he would be unstoppable.

"He's not entirely wrong. No one can deny that you're a gifted alchemist and would be a great advantage in a war, but he knew that I would do everything I could to make sure you never see the field of battle. I honestly don't know what kind of 'war' he was talking about, but just the thought of it was enough to push him to near insanity. Once he decided that he wanted you, nothing was going to get in his way. I was actually surprised he didn't try to hide anything, but I guess with General Grumman as a witness to him attacking you, trying to deny or hide anything would be pointless. He had plans for you if you didn't cooperate with him. He described how he was going to torture you, even to the point of brainwashing you, to get what he wanted. His description was so detailed I'll probably have nightmares about it, so I refuse to repeat that to you. Not only did he think just having you would benefit him, he thought he could manipulate me into doing what he wanted by threatening you."

Ed tried to process everything as Mustang finished putting on the last bandage.

"He was going to torture me?" he asked, inwardly shuddering.

Mustang nodded as he packed up the first aid kit. It was normal for anyone to be uncomfortable with that idea, especially a teenager. He almost didn't tell Ed, but the kid was smart and would know if he left anything out. Ed carefully put his shirt back on. The two alchemists rose from the bed. Ed's stance shifted and he looked uncomfortable for a moment. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out as if he was second guessing himself. Luckily, Mustang seemed to know what he wanted. He pulled Ed into a hug.

"Thank you for being there when you were," Ed said, "Who knows what would be happening to me right now if you weren't."

Mustang rubbed his hand up and down Ed's back in a soothing manner.

"You're welcome. I know I can be a bastard at times, but I do actually care about what happens to you," he chuckled softly.

The two stood there in each others embrace for a moment, seeming to find comfort in each other's presence. Mustang's arms tightened around Ed when he thought about how close he had come to losing his subordinate.

"Edward?"

Ed looked up at the use of his first name, not sure if he could even remember a time that his superior had ever called him by it.

"Can I request that you call the office as soon as you get to Resembool tomorrow? I just want to make sure you get there okay."

"Of course, Colonel."

The two made their way downstairs and joined Hawkeye for dinner. After eating, Mustang showed Ed his books on flame alchemy. However, he did make Ed promise not to try and blow up Eastern Command before handing him a book. He was sort of kidding, but he had to make sure and cover all the bases because you never really knew what could happen with Ed. The rest of the evening passed on quite pleasantly with Ed reading while Mustang and Hawkeye relaxed and played some chess.

It was around ten-thirty when the Hawkeye had noticed the turning of pages had stopped. She looked over and saw that Ed was asleep on top of the book. Quietly chuckling, she got the Colonel's attention and pointed to the sleeping alchemist. He sighed and shook his head, a small smile forming on his face.

"He can't quit learning until he just drops from exhaustion, can he? No wonder he's a prodigy," he said softly.

Hawkeye walked over to Ed and woke him up enough to get him up the stairs to the guest room. Mustang picked up the book and put it back on the shelf. He should probably be going to bed himself. As he ascended the staircase, his mind wandered back to the end of his interrogation with Archer.

" _Something's coming, Flame. A battle. Bigger than anything Amestris has ever seen," Archer burst into more laughter, seeming to go even more insane as the interrogation went on, "And you know what your problem is? You care way too much about your subordinates. That's only going to hold you back. One of your biggest priorities is to protect them. By the way you attacked me and how angry you were when you found me with young Edward, I would have guessed that he was your son. That could be dangerous, you know. If anyone ever found out about how much you care about that boy, they would have you wrapped around their finger. All they would have to do is get their hands on him, and you're screwed."_

Well that was true. He did care about his subordinates as if they were his own family. Even though he knew his subordinates were his weakness, Archer seemed to have underestimated his team. Each one of his subordinates were more than capable of defending their own lives, especially Edward. The only reason Archer was able to overpower him was because the kid probably didn't expect to get attacked by a fellow dog of the military.

He considered how tonight might impact his relationship with the blonde. They would probably go back to insulting each other as soon as he returned from Resembool. On the outside, their relationship would look the same. However, deep down it would be different. Ed now knew for a fact that there was someone looking out for him and would be there for him should the occasion arise.

Mustang smiled. He thought about each one of subordinates: Hawkeye, Havoc, Fuery, Falman, Breda...Ed. He vowed to protect his team as much as he could, and his team vowed to protect those they cared about. Whatever may be waiting for them, they would be ready.

 **And there you have it! Reviews are definitely appreciated. Constructive criticism is welcomed as I would like to write more FMA fanfics and would like to know what I could improve on! I hope you all enjoyed it!**

 **Until next time,**

 **alightintheshadows**


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